Domaine de la Tourmaline Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie 2023

Bright and delicious, this showcases sea spray, citrus peels, sliced apples, white peaches and oyster shells on the nose. The palate is crisp, salty, and full of bright melon and pear fruit, with hints of wet stone. Medium-bodied, lively and attractive with bright acidity and saline minerality, plus some silky weight from eight months’ aging on the wine’s post-fermentation lees. A perfect pairing for oysters and seafood.

Made by Domaine Gadais Père et Fils, this is a classic introduction to the Gadais style. This is their everyday wine, but it’s all estate fruit, grown with care and precision. The extreme division of the estate into many distinct plots makes it possible to vinify according to terroir. “Domaine de la Tourmaline” is the fruit of a subtle blending process and the result of the expertise handed down from father to son.

Sometimes considered a neutral grape variety, Melon de Bourgogne can achieve impressive things in the right hands. The Gadais family source these grapes from 30-year-old vines, and the concentration is evident on the palate. A great entry point for anyone just starting to explore Muscadet. It is made in the tradition of the great wines of the Loire, within which the Muscadet Sèvre et Maine is one of the jewels in the crown.